


Christmas Carols

by LizAnn_5869



Series: Life, Or What Happens When You're Busy Making Other Plans [10]
Category: Broadchurch
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Extended Families, F/M, Love, Mild Angst, Parent-Child Relationship, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-29
Updated: 2015-12-23
Packaged: 2018-05-03 22:36:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,760
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5309594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LizAnn_5869/pseuds/LizAnn_5869
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Three stories about the Hardy/Miller family's first Christmas together.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Rocking Around the Christmas Tree

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Sgt_Pepperony94](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sgt_Pepperony94/gifts), [nannyogg123](https://archiveofourown.org/users/nannyogg123/gifts), [NZLisaM](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NZLisaM/gifts).



> Happy Christmas! Thanks for reading my stories about this family. Hope your holidays are merry!

It was the first week of December and the cold, raw wind off the ocean had come and decided it would stay a while. Christmas decorations had been up in the Broadchurch shop windows for several weeks now.(Hardy had wryly observed that they had at least waited until two weeks before Halloween to begin decorating.) Ellie was moving furniture around in their lounge, hopeful to find an arrangement that accommodated the live tree they would be purchasing later. She was fairly bursting with excitement about it, mildly annoying Alec in the early morning hours with her exuberance before he left for work.

Ellie had already brought the colored fairy lights and large plastic tote of ornaments downstairs from the attic storage room. She took some time to plug in the lights, discovering that two strands would only halfway light up no matter how much she shook and wiggled the wires, so those would have to be replaced. Then, even though she didn't have a tree yet, she decided to look through her ornaments.

Ellie had never liked the Christmas trees that were all white lights and matching ornaments with a "theme." In her opinion, your Christmas tree was supposed to be like a scrapbook of your life, all mismatched and overfilled and lit up with big, fat multicolored lights. Her ornaments definitely reflected that. The first small plastic tote in the larger one held old glass ornaments belonging to her Granna, inherited by Ellie because her mother really didn't want them lost and they would never survive the chaos that was Lucy's life. Lucy didn't care about them, but never failed to make a comment about their mother favoring Ellie. Ellie had gotten good at turning a deaf ear. They were old and faded but still beautiful. And definitely going towards the top of the tree, with Fred and (well, honestly) Tom in the house. 

She set the tote of fading glass ornaments aside and pulled out a large envelope of decorations made by Tom in primary school. Here was Tom's school picture, age six, framed in macaroni spray painted gold. His chubby handprint turned into a Santa face. Laying that aside, she looked back in the tote and her heart was broken. She pulled out a fish shaped picture frame ornament, the picture was of a younger, shorter Danny and Tom. Both were muddy, grinning widely and holding up small fish they caught. She flipped it over and saw she had written that the boys were eight years old. She remembered that trip. Joe had taken them. They had come back excited, full of life and stories to tell. And because she questioned everything now, Ellie couldn't help wonder if Joe was looking at Danny then. If the seeds for what was to come were planted as long ago as that. She covered her mouth with her palm, stifling the sob that bubbled up. 

"Mum?" Tom was leaning on the doorframe, looking concerned. 

"Just got blindsided again, sweetie," she sighed. "We really didn't get many decorations out last year, so I must have missed this one." 

Tom sat beside her and picked up the fishing ornament. He stared at it. He squeezed his eyes closed for a second and took a deep breath. It had only been a week since Joe had been sentenced to fifteen years for attacking Chloe's boyfriend and holding Ellie hostage, among other things, in a half baked plan to take the boys out of the country. It had gone spectacularly wrong for Joe, to Ellie and Alec's great relief. 

Joe deserved a longer sentence, but they took what they could get, and they finally were free of him. It just seemed that little memories would always be popping up like a Jack in the box. She gave Tom a concerned look.

Tom took another deep breath. "I'm fine, Mum. And it's going on the tree. That was a good weekend, and I want to remember it. I caught more fish than Danny," he said with a small smirk.

Ellie chuckled. "And that's what really counts."

"Yep." 

Ellie gave her son a little squeeze. He'd grown up so much, especially since Halloween when Joe had shown up. "We had a very small, depressing Christmas last year and I don't think Alec's was much better. So I reckon we should set about making a great Christmas for us all. We have a lot to celebrate," Ellie said with a smile. "Going to be a much better one than last year's. New house, new life and all."

"Oh, Mum, this isn't gonna be like one of those TV shows that says 'it'll be the best Christmas ever', is it?" Tom said with a smirk.

"Yes. Yes it is, son. This place is gonna look like Father Christmas barfed up tinsel and garland all over it." She attempted to say that with a straight face and failed miserably. They were chuckling as she pulled Tom's first Christmas picture ornament out of the tote and showed it to him. "Look, you were all bald head and fat rolls and those Christmas reindeer jimjams were so flattering. When you graduate I'm going to blow this picture up really big and display it at your party."

Tom reached into the tote and pulled out two ornaments. "Got these for you and him a few years ago," he said. One was a police badge, the other a small ambulance. "Olly took me shopping."

"I remember," she smiled. 

"What do we do with it?" Tom said, holding out the ambulance ornament. 

"Do you want to keep it?"

"I want to chuck it in a bin, Mum. Can we just get rid of the ones with his name or whatever on them? We don't need them. We're not that family anymore." 

Ellie nodded. Tom's statement very accurately summed up their entire year. "We've got a half hour before Alec brings Fred home from Beth's. Come on." She grabbed the tote and Tom followed her into the kitchen. She grabbed the bin from under the kitchen sink and set it by the table. She relieved Tom of the ambulance ornament and dropped it in the bin. They had gone through most of the tote by the time Alec and Fred blew in on a gust of frigid winter air.

Alec took in the scene as he helped Fred out of his bright yellow parka. With raised eyebrows he looked in the bin, and then at Ellie, who gave him a brilliant smile. He hadn't expected this scenario at all. He definitely didn't expect her smiling about it.

"We're going to need some more decorations. And more lights," Ellie informed him cheerily. 

*******

They had a meal of sandwiches and soup, during which they promised Fred over and over that yes, they would be getting the tree after they ate. Ellie sent Tom upstairs with Fred, instructing Tom to find Fred a warmer jumper. When Tom balked Ellie reminded him, "The faster you move, the sooner we get a tree and even better...you're not having to clean up the dinner mess. Now move it!" He moved it, and she and Alec set about cleaning up.

"So....what I walked in on before....you two okay?"

Ellie gave him a small smile. "It got a little emotional....but yeah, we're okay. We never went through the Christmas decorations when we unpacked boxes. Why would we? Anyways, we found some old family ornaments. Tom said we weren't that family anymore. And he's right. I just want to focus on making this a great Christmas. We deserve it after last year's."

"Aye, you do."

She cupped his cheek. "So do you," she said, kissing him.

"It wouldn't take much to beat last year's. I'd say it already has." 

She hugged him tightly. "That's good. You'll have Daisy..."

"And you lot." Ellie grinned widely.

"What's the word on Daisy's plans?"

Alec sighed. Tess was making it so much more difficult than it needed to be. She had first been fine with Christmas Day but Daisy wanted Christmas Eve and day with Alec since they had missed out on so much. "At this point, Daisy's having Christmas with her mum on the twenty-third and I'm picking her up early on Christmas Eve. They've been fighting a lot. Daisy plans to stay until New Year. Tess wants her back for Dave's family party on the twenty-eighth. It could get ugly after Christmas."

"Oh, no. I hope not. I hate that for her. I want her here for as long as we can get her but it's no good, fighting with her mum like that."

"Let's just get through Christmas. Then we'll see what happens."

Ellie kissed Alec's forehead. "Get through it? No, we are going to celebrate. Make it our best..."

Alec groaned. "You're not saying best Christmas ever, are you, like we're on EastEnders or some such rubbish?"

She laughed. "You and Tom are really two peas in a pod, aren't you?" He looked confused for a second , then shrugged. By then, their boys were noisily plodding down the stairs, bundled up and ready for the cold. 

*****

Ellie slid into the driver's seat and announced, "I call the radio station!" She merrily switched it from talk radio (Alec's choice) to the station that had been playing all Christmas music since first November. "All I Want For Christmas Is You" burst out of the speakers and Ellie started singing along. So did Fred, who made a valiant attempt at singing what words he could understand. Ellie's "peas in the pod" both groaned.

"Grinches in the car, Fred," Ellie called out.

"I am not a grinch!" Tom argued.

"I am driving on the way home," Alec asserted. 

"So should I add Christmas music to the ever growin' and never endin' list of things that cheese you off?" Ellie asked Alec.

"It's not that I don't like it...it just....well, no I don't. I don't like it. A lot of it's cliche and too annoyingly soppy and....." 

"Bet if the Proclaimers had a Christmas album you'd listen," she argued.

"It wouldn't be that damn soppy. And if it was it'd be because they were being ironic. You're about to miss the street," Alec pointed out. 

She grumbled under her breath, calling him a knob, mainly because he was right. She pulled into an adjacent lot and turned around and they pulled into tree lot's car park in silence. 

"Only you two could fight over Christmas carols," Tom commented as he freed Fred from his car seat. 

"We're not fighting," Ellie argued.

"We're having a difference of opinion," Alec agreed with her. Tom rolled his eyes and took his little brother's hand. They walked ahead of Alec and Ellie. 

Alec gave her a sideways glance, not expecting to catch her doing the same. Her lips quirked into a small smile, and so did his. A second later they were both chuckling. Alec extended his hand to Ellie and she took it. Tom looked back at them incredulously. 

They were just weird, Tom decided.

*****

There was still a good selection of trees on the lot, which made for a plethora of choices. Ellie liked the shorter, fatter ones, and Alec, who preferred the taller, skinnier ones, had the unerring ability to find the bare spots and imperfections. So Tom and Fred took matters into their own hands and found one for the grownups. "Over here, Mum," Tom said, pointing out one that was tall, but not too sparse and skinny. Fred was hugging it.

"Decision made, I reckon?" Alec asked. 

"I want it," Fred said decisively.

Alec looked at the price tag. "Well, it's not out of the budget. What do you think?" 

Ellie smiled at her little boy who was looking up at her with a brilliant smile. "I think if we don't get this one his heart will break."

*****

Alec and Ellie walked around the lot, looking for the attendant. He'd disappeared into thin air, apparently. The boys followed them, content to look at the other trees and Christmas lights hanging up. A speaker was piping out Christmas music. "Is it gettin' on your nerves yet?" Ellie asked with a wry grin.

"No....and I'm not a Scrooge or a grinch or anything like that....and I'm rather liking all this despite the bloody freezing weather. And I know you were just takin' the piss, anyways."

She giggled. "Maybe, maybe not." She leaned in and whispered conspiratorially, "And I saw you tappin' your foot to the song in the car." 

He rolled his eyes, barely suppressing a smile. "I was tapping it in annoyance."

Ellie giggled. "Okay, sure, love. Whatever."

"That's my story, and I'm sticking to it." He couldn't suppress the smile now. 

She squeezed his hand. "So, apparently you don't hate Christmas trees...." 

He snorted laughter. "No, I don't. See, there you go again..."

She stuck her tongue out at him. "S'not my fault you have a bit of a Grinchy reputation now. My question was, how do you like your Christmas tree?"

She asked with the seriousness of someone asking a guest how he liked his tea.

"Is this one of those questions I'll never get right?"

"No, knob. It isn't one of those questions. I'm genuinely wondering. And I won't judge you...too much..by your answer."

Alec rolled his eyes. "Well...when I had Christmas with Tess it was all white lights and a lot of glass baubles." He smiled at a memory. "And the ornaments Daisy made at school or at home. Those were the best. Always liked looking at those."

"Tom has a lot of those. Fred's starting to. Nothing better than those kid decorations." Something occurred to her. "You haven't seen those in a while, have you?" 

"Been a long time since I've been with Daisy at Christmas. This will be the first one since Tess and I broke up that we've spent any length of time together."

They sped up a bit to keep Tom and Fred in sight. "Then this will be a good one for you," Ellie said.

"Hoping so," Alec answered with a little smile.

"What did your tree look like when you were a kid? I decorate like my mum did, so you'll see what mine looked like."

Alec thought a moment. Christmas with his parents wasn't really the most wonderful time of the year. They battled most of the time but at least kept it together for Christmas morning. They behaved and Alec opened his gifts. The fireworks usually started up again later, but they usually gave him the gift of a peaceful Christmas morning. He really did like the way his mum decorated the tree.

"Mum had a couple of those strands of fairy lights that bubbled. I remember that. I used to stand and stare at the tree. Or I'd lie on the floor under the tree and stare up through the branches at the lights. Mum even caught me taking naps and reading under the tree a few times."

It warmed her heart in the frigid night air to hear of a happy memory Alec had of his life in Glasgow. There weren't a lot of happy memories for him there, and it saddened her to think that he never really caught a break. Turmoil with Daisy and Tess, turmoil with his parents. She thought she would have loved to have seen him as a boy, all gangly and freckled, lying under a Christmas tree, nose in a book.

Alec caught her staring speculatively at him. "What?" he asked.

"Just thinkin' about how sweet you were under that tree," she said with grin. He rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on. Now you're disgruntled by your past sweetness. That's just silly." She laughed. "Did you ever do anything with extended family?"

"At Christmas? Well...Mum was an only child like me...and Dad had one brother. So we'd visit her mum and my dad's parents. My uncle's family would be there and I'd play with his two."

"So you have cousins your age?"

"Andrew's a bit older, but Carrie and I are the same age. We played together mostly."

"Why haven't you ever mentioned them?"

Why? he thought. Because he lost touch with them. He cut off everyone while he was struggling. They probably wouldn't speak to him at this point anyway. 

He didn't tell her that. Instead he said, "I haven't been in touch. Time flies, I guess."

"But that's all the family you have, right? And they weren't here when you....they didn't know, did they? How sick you were then." Her eyes widened with the realization of just how much he had shut down during the worst part of his illness. So many lost opportunities. "Well, that's just bollocks."

Now the conversation was getting uncomfortable and Alec was relieved to see the lot attendant. "I was wondering where the bloody hell he went," Alec muttered. 

******

They got the tree home, eventually. They were all out of breath (but not dangerously so, in Alec's case) and Fred was in a frenzy by the time they got it into the stand. Alec was thankful that they didn't have to cut much off of the trunk to get it to fit. 

They were both thankful that it was Fred's bedtime but Fred was devastated. "Mumma and Daddy are going to try to get the lights on and then we'll decorate all day tomorrow, sweetie," she told him. "Can you take him up, Alec? I'll be up in a bit, okay?" She looked as though she as planning something. He raised an eyebrow but scooped up Fred, promising him stories from the basket of Christmas books Ellie had brought down from the attic. As soon as Alec and Fred went up and Tom was occupied with the fairy lights, she fished her phone out of her purse and dialed up Daisy.

******

Ellie was up early Saturday morning and ready to go by the time her family had dragged themselves out of bed. Alec was bleary eyed from a late evening of untangling and stringing lights. They had gotten to a point in which Ellie had said it just wouldn't do not to replace the light strands that were malfunctioning so they stopped. They went to bed late and apparently Ellie had risen with the sun, cheery as always.

Alec really had no idea how she managed it. "Off to the shops!" She announced, plopping Fred in his booster seat and kissing Tom's head. He grunted a reply.

"What, now?" Alec managed. 

"Lights and baubles to buy," she said with a smile. She kissed him and added, "I'll text you if I'm going to be out long. Let Fred put some of those stuffed cloth ornaments on the bottom of the tree so he won't burst from having to wait." She snatched up her purse and gave them a wave. She left them to their breakfast.

Alec was still blinking the sleep out of his eyes when he accidentally kicked the bin. It made an unusually jingling, rattling noise and he popped open the lid. The remains of a Miller family Christmas littered the bag. "Not that family anymore," he remembered Ellie saying. He thought, if they woke up and got through the morning he might need to make a trip out when Ellie came back.

******

It was nearly lunch before Ellie finally returned, laden with shopping bags. It hadn't taken her long to pick out baubles and find multicolored lights but the one thing she'd wanted had taken some searching. She wouldn't show Alec what she bought. "Nope. Later, when we decorate," she promised, putting the bags in the laundry room. "And no peekin', Hardy. I mean it."

"I'm heading out to the shops after soup and a sandwich. And you can't see what I'll buy either, " Alec announced, as he steered Fred away from the tree and into the kitchen. 

*****

By the time Alec returned home from his much shorter trip to the shops Fred was down for a nap. Ellie was stringing some lights. "I think we might finally be ready for this, took us long enough."

"Well, you and your marathon mystery shopping trips," Alec pointed out.

"You'll be happy when you see why, I hope." She handed him a shopping bag. "Happy tree decorating day. Or something. I don't do wrapping, by the way. You'll at least get a festive bag or two at Christmas." She was babbling and he realized she was a bit nervous about whatever was in the bag. He gave her a quizzical look and then opened the bag to find two boxes of bubble fairy lights. "Didn't think I was going to find any in the shops. Thought I might have to go online or somethin'."

Alec thought that Daisy would find him horribly soppy to be speechless over a box of lights, but he was gobsmacked. He was sure of Ellie's love, and of his love for her. But these gestures she made still caught him off guard. She was looking at him expectantly and he gave her his wide, eye crinkling smile that she loved so much. He kissed her and said, "Thank you, love."

"Not too corny then?" She actually looked relieved. He pulled a small package out of his coat pocket. 

"I don't think it is. Hope you don't think this is, either." He handed her the package. "I don't wrap gifts either. And sometimes you're lucky if you get a festive bag. I'll try to make an effort for Christmas, though."

She took out a small Christmas ornament, a little polymer clay Christmas tree with five little baubles, each labeled with a name. Alec, Ellie, Daisy, Tom and Fred. "That's the least soppy one there. There was a booth at the Christmas tree lot, saw it last night. Couldn't see us as five little snowmen or heads pokin' out of a sleigh....." He was emphatically interrupted by her lips on his. When they surfaced for air, he said, "It's a start, I suppose. One doesn't replace all you tossed, but..we're this family now, right?"

"Absolutely," she said, beaming. She hugged him tightly. She could feel a tradition being started. She hoped it was. 

*****

Fred's eyes goggled when he saw the lights on the tree. "Oh, bubbles! We got bubbles! Where we get those? Wow!" Alec laughed. He thought that maybe, he could vaguely remember feeling that way when he saw the Christmas tree as a boy. 

Ellie left her fellows in the kitchen long enough to pour four mugs of steaming hot chocolate. When she returned, two pairs of feet were sticking out from under it. Giggles rang out from under it, one high pitched and the other deep. Tom walked in from the hallway and looked at his brother and Alec, laying on the floor heads under the tree. He shrugged. "Got room?" Tom asked. 

"Yeah!" Fred squealed. Tom joined them. Ellie burst out laughing. She set the mugs down and grabbed her phone. She snapped several pictures and texted them to Daisy.

 

*******

In Sandbrook, Daisy lay on her bed, trying to sleep, but feeling restless. The harsh voices downstairs and slamming doors weren't helping the screaming headache she had. Normally she'd be out on a Saturday night but she called her friends and begged off, feeling ill. She wished she had gone, because cause anything would be better than this, even if she was probably running a low grade fever. 

She'd been scrolling through Twitter on her phone, but even that hurt her head to read. She pulled her warm quilt over her and snuggled into her bed. 

Her phone buzzed on the pillow next to her, and she opened one eye. If it had been one of her friends she wouldn't have picked it up, but it was Ellie's text alert sound. The screen displayed a picture of a Christmas tree in her dad and Ellie's living room, and she could just make out in the light of the tree three pairs of feet sticking out. The text read "Look what they're getting up to. Can't wait for your feet to join them. Love you!" 

She gave a small smile, but tears were burning behind her eyes. She texted back a smiling face, then placed her phone on the nightstand. She wiped her eyes, feeling utterly forgotten by the people arguing downstairs. A loud door slam reverberated up the stairs. 

She could not wait until Christmas.


	2. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ellie has some surprises for Alec. We also meet some of Alec's extended family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I picked that particular carol for the title because I love the movie "Meet Me in St. Louis" and the scene in which Judy Garland sings it is a particular favorite of mine. In that movie, it represents the hope of family being together at Christmas, and in this chapter Alec has the opportunity to reconnect with some family.

"You've some mail," Ellie dropped a large envelope and a smaller one on the table by Alec, who was finishing up breakfast. 

He snatched up the big envelope first. It had a Sandbrook postmark. "S' from Daisy," he muttered. He tore into the clasp and found paper inside. 

He pulled three paper ornaments out. They were ornaments Daisy had made as a small child. He picked up each one. A school picture framed with painted ice pop sticks, with "I love Daddy" written in the shaky printing of a five year old. Another photo, glued on paper and cut in a heart shape, of a younger, clean shaven Alec and a primary school aged Daisy standing in front of a Christmas tree. Her tiny handprints forming the wings of an angel. They were accompanied by a note. "I heard you needed some tree decorations. I thought you might like these ones I made for you. I saved them. I'm glad you have a place for them to be. Can't wait until Christmas. Love you, Daisy." He looked up at Ellie, who was grinning from ear to ear. The women in his life were in collusion, apparently. He just grinned back, and Ellie patted his shoulder and kissed the top of his head. 

"Who is that from?" she asked, indicating the other envelope.

He saw the Glasgow postmark and commented, "I'm guessing you already know this as well."

She gave him a small smile and said, "Maybe."

He opened a glittery Christmas card showing a snowy midnight scene. He opened it and a picture and note dropped out. The signature on the card was no surprise to Alec. "With love, Carrie, Doug, Fiona, Kate, Jeannie and Sarah Rose," it read. Ellie picked up the picture of the family. 

"Beautiful girls," she commented.  
He nodded and opened the notepaper.

"Dear Alec,  
Your Ellie contacted me and sent your me your new address. I'm so glad she did. I haven't talked to her but I can already tell she's exactly who you need. Between her and Daisy, they'll get your arse back in gear. I don't want to let years go by without talking. So the next move is yours. Call me to talk, or to tell me to piss off. Whatever. I just want to hear from you. I miss you. Love always, Carrie."

He folded the note and laid it on the table. His expression was unreadable so Ellie felt the need to fill in the silence with chatter. "I just couldn't imagine you havin' family out there and you not talkin' to them. I called Daisy and asked her to send those ornaments but also to see if she had Carrie's contact information. She found it in a old address book Tess had. So I contacted her, and I'm sorry if it makes you angry, but...."

"I'm not angry...."he began, and she raised her eyebrow. "...Okay, yeah, a little, but mostly at myself."

"Then call her."

Alec was silent for a bit. "I don't know what to say after so long."

She leaned over him, putting her arms around his neck and her forehead against his.

"You'll figure it out when the time comes, Alec. You will." She kissed his forehead. "She didn't send back a card just to tell you to go to hell, you know."

"She probably should. Her brother probably would do it."

"Just call her. She obviously wants you to." 

"She's obviously on Team Ellie," he said with a smirk. "You haven't even met and you're probably already her favorite one of the pair of us."

Ellie snorted. "That was always expected to happen." He rolled his eyes, but he was smirking. "Call her tonight, then?"

"Now, I didn't say I'd do that."

"Better now than never. Better late than never, as well."

He took his plate to the sink. "Thought you weren't into shitty platitudes."

"I am when it suits my purpose."

*******

Crime had taken a bit of a hiatus in Broadchurch so Alec found himself home at a decent hour, and he could eat with his family. He called Daisy afterward, to check on her since she'd been ill and to thank her for sending her ornaments which now shared a place of honor with Tom's and Fred's. He'd sent her a picture of the ornament he'd purchased for Ellie and she proclaimed that there was hope for him yet. He gave her some Christmas shopping hints for the boys, and they rang off. Alec could not shake the feeling that something was bothering Daisy, even though she sounded healthy again and was very cheery. She was certainly looking forward to Christmas with them, and so was he. It felt like something was missing when she wasn't there. 

He still had his phone in hand when Ellie poked her head into the downstairs study. "I'm wrapping...well, bagging presents upstairs in our room, so stay out till I give the all clear. You calling Carrie?"

"Just got off with Daisy. She's feeling better. Still think she's got something on her mind, though."

"Well....maybe we can get her to open up when she gets here. Nice changing the subject by the way. You're banned from our room, so now's a lovely time for you to call. Don't be nervous about it, just do it! I'll give you the all clear when I'm done." She ducked back out of the room, closing the door and not letting him get a word in edgewise. 

Alec plopped onto the desk chair again, sighing. He wasn't nervous, (much), he was embarrassed that he'd let so much time slip by. It hadn't been that he was cutting them out, time had truly slipped away. He had Carrie's note on the desk in front of him. She had included her phone number. He hesitated, then decided the hell with it, and dialed.

It rang four times before someone answered. A tiny girl's voice said, "Hi."

"Hello," Alec said back, trying to wrack his brain for this child's name. He realized he'd never actually met her. Fiona, Kathy...no, Kate...Jeannie.....Sarah Rose. "Sarah Rose? Is your Mumma home?"

"I do Mumma's phone. She's in the kitchen," Sarah Rose said. "I get her." The sound of the phone being dropped was loud in his ear. There was a long pause in which he could hear voices calling back and forth. In that time he briefly considered hanging up, but he never got the chance to. 

"Here's the damn phone," a woman was muttering. "Hello?"

"Hi..Carrie, it's Alec," he said. He took a deep breath. "We got your card today."

"Aye, reckoned as much. Sorry about Sarah- she loves to answer the phone but she's still working on that whole give and take conversational thing." 

Alec could empathize. 

"It was fine," he assured her. There was an awkward silence. 

"I'm glad your Ellie contacted me," Carrie said. "I wondered if I'd hear from you again. Tess changed her number and I never had Daisy's. I kept reading about you, hearin' about those cases you had in Sandbrook and Broadchurch. Had no idea how to get in touch. You looked like shit on telly. I saw a clip of one of those press conferences. It scared me. I talked with Andrew, and he told me if you wanted us you'd call us. What was going on with you?"

He started to answer her but she went on. He recalled that she was always the talker, the one telling him what they were pretending as children. "So are you ill? Are you any better? What happened?" She finally paused long enough for him to speak.

"I have a heart condition. Arrhythmia. I was very ill for a while, right before Tess and I divorced. Well, for a long while after."

"What are you doing about it?" She had her typical demeanor that accepted no bullshit. She'd always been that way.

"I had a pacemaker implanted. I'm feeling better now. It was rough for a bit, but it's better now. " He had conditioned himself for so long to obfuscate and downplay his condition that he found himself automatically doing it with Carrie.

She was having none of it. "I'll be honest, Alec. Ellie told me you were in a bad place for a long time. She said you were gravely ill. So I'm guessing it went a long time before you did anything about it?" 

"Yeah, Carrie, I did," he muttered, annoyed. He was starting to wonder if she was going to tell him to go to hell after all. He was about to interrupt, tell her Merry Christmas, glad we reconnected, and feel that his obligation was fulfilled. He really didn't want a lecture, even if he deserved it. "It's under control now. It's better."

"Ellie told me that," she said, sounding mildly annoyed. "You didn't have to go through it alone, Alec. That's what I'm tryin' to tell you. I can imagine you didn't have Tess' support.. That wasn't exactly her thing. You could have had ours, Alec." Carrie didn't sound prickly and annoyed anymore. She sounded upset. "All that time wasted."

"I wasn't talkin' to anyone, Carrie. I wouldn't make the same decisions now that I did then, y'know." He was feeling exhausted, trying to justify it all. Carrie had often exhausted him, as he remembered. 

"I reckon you felt backed against the wall, right? I know that feeling. Sarah was eight weeks early. There were a lot of complications. Thought she was gonna die. Between her and caring for the other girls I felt hopeless much of the time. But I got through it with help. I hate to think of anyone goin' through a crisis like that alone. Especially someone I love."

He was silent for a minute. She was right, he had felt that way, with Tess' betrayal and secrets and his heart and discovering Pippa in the river. And the feeling never let up, not really, until Claire was arrested. "You're right," he said. "I was backed up against the wall. I chose to keep it all to myself, and that didn't work. It was a disaster. What could you have done? You had your hands full too."

"We could have at least talked. You could have confided in me. Maybe I could have helped. I would have wanted to. You wouldn't have been alone. Did you at least have Ellie's help at some point?"

He didn't answer.

"You didn't?" Her voice rose again.

"I texted her about the surgery right before it happened. We weren't exactly together yet."

She gave a sharp bark of laughter. "Bloody hell, Alec Hardy! I want to meet this woman. She's a special one to put up with your horseshit! She still thought you were worth the trouble. Keep her!"

"I intend to!" There was a pause, and both of them chuckled, and there was a feeling that the ice had been broken. 

"Alec, I've missed you so much. We were close as kids. I miss that. You were more of a brother to me than my own was back then. Andrew and I have never been close. He's a good man, but he's off in America doing his own thing. I think he had one foot out the door and out of Glasgow since about birth. I have Doug's family and they're wonderful but they're in Inverness, and I missed havin' you around. And I suppose I could've tried harder, I know. Life with a premie and three other kids...life in general. And I don't know...maybe you didn't feel that way about me, but at least you were always kind."

"Yeah, I know. Life in general," he agreed with her. "And you were like a sister. The best kind, the kind that goes home when she starts drivin' me spare."

Carrie burst out laughing. "And there's that smart arse I've missed." They both chuckled quietly for a minute, then she sobered and asked, "Did you at least get to see Daisy?"

"The divorce was...bad, really bad. And I was so ill. I didn't see her then, but we've reconnected now. I had her last summer. She loves Ellie and her kids. I'm in a much better place now, Carrie."

"I figured you were with Ellie in your corner. But oh, Alec. I'm sorry you didn't have Daisy then. I know how much that must have shattered you." Her voice had gone shaky at the end. 

"Aye. It did. But it really is better now. And having Ellie in my corner is the best thing that could have ever happened to me."

"And that's why I want to meet her! Look, we're in Inverness from the twenty-third 'til Boxing Day. but after that.... Do you have plans for New Year? Bring Ellie and the kids here. You can stay with us. It'll be a squeeze but we'll manage."

"Well...I don't know, I don't want to impose...."

"Ach, Alec, enough of that crap. Talk to Ellie and work it out. Doug and I want you to come."

"I'll discuss it with Ellie and see what Daisy's plans end up being," he said. He knew when he brought Ellie into it, more than likely he'd be spending New Year in Glasgow. "But, you can probably count on us."

She gave a happy laugh, and the sound reminded him of a little brunette girl who obsessed about The Wizard of Oz and wore her hair long braids so she'd look like Dorothy. She had followed him around constantly. And he had completely enjoyed her company growing up. He realized then just how much he had missed her.

"Well, I am expecting you, then, Alec Hardy and his family of five. I can't wait to meet those boys. Ellie sent a picture. Handsome fellas."

"They're good boys. I'm lucky to have 'em," Alec told her. He heard Carrie chuckle.

"I think "lucky" doesn't begin to cover it, Alec. It looks like you've found a blessing."

Alec grinned from ear to ear. She was right.

****

Ellie wasn't finished with wrapping gifts but her curiosity got the better of her. She didn't want to invade his privacy but she couldn't resist. She just wanted to know they were talking. And if they weren't and he was upset by something she decided she needed to be there. 

She approached the closed study door and heard the laughter before she cracked the door open. She loved it when he laughed like that.

"Oh, Tighe was just full o' horseshit, y' know that. The way I remember it was that he hid in the back of the school until the teacher found him a bin, cryin'. " His laughter rang out again, and she could see his eye crinkling smile and dimples. His accent was thicker than she'd ever heard, other than when he was furious about something. 

Ellie backed out silently, beaming. 

******

Ellie had finished her gift wrapping and was waiting for Alec in the kitchen, two glasses of wine poured. He'd been talking for at least an hour, which had to be some sort of record for a social call. She heard the door open down the hall and Alec's footsteps approaching her. "In here, love. Fancy some wine?" she called out. 

Alec entered the kitchen. He looked at her intensely, and sat down next to her. Cupping her cheek, he drew her in close to kiss her deeply. When the kiss broke, she said breathlessly, "So me interfering not so bad after all?"

"Aye. We now have New Year plans, if you're agreeable. She's invited us to their house in Glasgow. She wants to meet the amazing woman I'm love with. And her kids. So if you're willing to go on a really long car trip...."

She nodded emphatically. "I'm agreeable. I don't mind a long trip. I want to meet the family of the bloke I love." He kissed her again. 

Forehead to forehead they sat as the kiss ebbed away. He brushed his lips against her brow and whispered, "Thank you. I love you. How did I get by for so long like I did without you?"

"I don't know, other than your sheer stubbornness. Luckily for you, I'm just as stubborn."

"A force of nature, you are. You and my daughter...and my cousin." 

She handed him his wineglass and they clinked them together. She gave him a cheeky grin and said, "You're a lucky man, then."

"Carrie said you lot are a blessing." Alec said this to her seriously. He wrapped her in a tight embrace. Ellie felt an unexpected tightness in her throat. She closed her eyes and they stayed wrapped around each other for a bit. 

"It goes both ways," she whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm an only child with lots of cousins, and Alec and Carrie remind me of myself and one of my cousins as children. I was always tagging along, telling him what we were pretending and I'm sure, being a general pain. We all always get together at Christmas, and even though time gets away from us and we might not see each other for a while, it's like no time has passed when we are together. I thought our favorite grouchy Scottish detective could use a relationship like that too.


	3. Silent Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alec and Ellie's blended family celebrate together on their first Christmas Eve.

Alec woke early Christmas Eve and was dressed and ready to drive to Sandbrook before anyone else in the house was awake. He was brewing decaf tea and wondering what the point of it was. Brewing it was habit. He wondered if he'd finally managed to trick his brain into thinking it actually helped wake him up. 

Ellie shuffled in, yawning, in her fluffy blue dressing gown. Her hair was longer now, and she was sleepily putting it up in a short ponytail. "Ready to go then?" she asked, giving him a peck on the lips.

"Aye, I want to be on the road. The holiday traffic will be hell if I don't. The weather's in my favor at least. We'll stop for lunch on the way home. Maybe I can get her to talk about what's bothering her." They had talked a lot since the beginning of the month, but what she didn't say loomed large over their conversations. "I don't know what I'll be walking into there."

"Hopefully it won't get ugly."

He sighed. He didn't know if that could be avoided now. 

 

******

It didn't take quite as long as he thought it would, but traffic had him fuming by the time he entered Sandbrook and made his way to the neighborhood in which Tess and Dave resided. He pulled into their driveway. He knew from past experience that Daisy always packed like she was taking a year long cruise to Alaska and with Christmas gifts it would only be worse. At least he could make the trip from the house to the boot shorter. As he approached the front door he was dismayed to hear their voices, harsh and loud. 

"I don't want to go there," he heard Daisy's voice behind the door. "They don't give a rat's arse about me, Mum. " The door was jerked open.

"Language," Tess said tiredly as Daisy let Alec in. 

"Really, Mum? I think we're beyond that. You've used some choice swears talkin' about Dad and Ellie." She turned and kissed her dad's cheek. Tess had the grace to look embarassed. "Hi, Dad. Let me get my stuff." She kissed him again and dashed upstairs.

"Enjoy your favored parent status," Tess muttered bitterly, "She is firmly Daddy's girl again. And I'm the bad cop. It's like a flashback." 

Alec took a good look at her. She looked exhausted, dark circles under her eyes. He wouldn't rise to the bait. "Haven't settled the plans, then?"

"I want her back on the 28th. She doesn't want to come back. It's her call now, so I guess she'll be back after New Year. Plans settled." Her voice was low and tight with bitterness. 

"You're right, it is her call. We're going to Glasgow for New Year to visit Carrie and the kids. I'll bring her back after that, in plenty of time for school."

She rolled her eyes. "I never could stand her."

That did irritate Alec. Now she was just having a go because she could. "You never cared about Carrie one way or the other, Tess. What's goin' on? I can tell Daisy's been upset, and you look like you're shattered."

"Things aren't going well here with work and...with Dave. I suppose karma's kicking my arse for a change, as I'm sure you're thrilled to hear." 

"I don't take any pleasure in it, Tess. I'm sorry it's happening, and that Daisy's upset about it. That's my focus," Alec asserted. 

"Of course," Tess said, with just a hint of sarcasm. "Make sure she at least calls me on Christmas."

She always said to make sure Daisy called, and Daisy always did without a prompt. He bit back the comment he wanted to make about the irony, considering all the phone calls he never received and she never encouraged. "You know she will, Tess," was his only comment. By then Daisy was bumping her big rolling suitcase down the stairs. Her rucksack was on her back. 

"I just have the plastic tote with the Christmas gifts. I think that'll do it. Can we get it all in the boot?" she asked. 

"I can already tell you're going to win the best wrapped gifts award," Alec said with a smirk.

"And I reckon you cleared out the festive bag section at Tesco's, right?" Daisy gave an identical smirk back. 

"Ellie can't gift wrap either, so it was both of us," Alec grinned with a nod.

Daisy turned to hug her mum, whose disinterest in that glimpse of life in the Hardy-Miller household was written clearly on her face. "Mum. I'll see you after New Year. I'll call. I promise. I don't want to leave you angry. I love you." She embraced her mother tightly. When she broke the embrace, Alec could see the distress in Daisy's eyes. She kissed her mum's cheek.

Tess took a deep breath. "Your dad says you're taking a road trip to Glasgow for New Year. Have fun." She exchanged a glance with Alec, who looked grateful that Tess had given Daisy the gift of a peaceful goodbye. 

******

Alec arranged Daisy's luggage in the boot. He looked up to see his daughter looking back at the house. "Darlin', do you want to stay through New Year?"

She took a shaky breath. "Yes. Yes, and I intend to stay. We've missed too many Christmases. I'm ready, let's go, okay?" She yanked the car door open and slid in before he could answer. 

He got in next to her, and as he suspected, she was furiously wiping her eyes. 

"Ready to go?" he asked. She nodded, looking out the passenger window. "Darlin'..."

"I'm fine!" Daisy said vehemently.

"Darlin'," he said again, calmly. 

"I'm sorry," she muttered.

Alec started the car. "In about an hour we're stopping for lunch. If you want to talk to me now, fine, otherwise, wait 'till then. But I know things aren't good. I got that from your mum." He put the car into gear and glanced at Daisy, who found Alec's CD's. 

"No Christmas carols?" Daisy said with a sniff, the tears under control for now.

"When Ellie's in the car I play 'em." 

Daisy grinned. "Not up for the carols 24/7?"

He snorted. "What do you think?"

She chuckled, then popped his Beatles cd in the stereo. "Maybe I'll have more Christmas spirit later, Dad." 

 

*******

She remained quiet, but by the time they reached their lunch destination Daisy was quietly singing along with the "na, nas" of "Hey Jude." She had relaxed visibly the farther they got from Sandbrook. 

The restaurant sold fish and chips, and looked deserted. There was large, hand lettered sign on the door informing of their intent to be closed by 2:00 for Christmas Eve. As it it was just past noon, the Hardys reckoned they could get something. The staff still eyed them with annoyance, which made Alec all the more determined to have fish and chips for lunch. The speaker system was piping tinny sounding pop Christmas music. Daisy looked disgusted. "My first Christmas song all day and it has to be 'Last Christmas.'" Alec snorted laughter.

Once the server , who was wearing a sprig of mistletoe on her name tag, took their order, Alec took a deep breath and dove in. "So, what's going on?"

"You waste no time."

"I told ya. Either in the car or in the restaurant. You thought I didn't mean it?" 

Daisy rolled her eyes. "Fine, Dad. It's not like it's a secret. Mum and Dave are rocky right now. Fighting. There's an inquiry on him at work. He neglected to interview someone for a case, I guess. Mum's been getting shit from the CS too. Says she's probably not ever going to be promoted. They're fighting at home, and work." 

Alec was gobsmacked. He was still amazed Tess had managed to keep the job she had to begin with. So many secrets still being kept from Daisy. It would never be the right time to tell her everything. He feared what would happen when the time finally came. 

He rubbed his beard nervously, then scratched the back of his head. Daisy caught it immediately, being the daughter of two detectives.

"You're acting dodgy. Do you know something? Have you heard something?" she demanded.

"No, this is the first I've heard. There was a drug case recently where the alleged perpetrator got off. Was that it?" Alec asked, the wheels turning in his mind. He'd heard some things through the grapevine, but in very general terms. While Dave hadn't been specifically named, Alec knew all too well that he had an established history of negligence when distracted, as did Tess, particularly when she was the distraction. That made him wonder if Dave had another distraction. 

"I don't know. Maybe. Why? You know more that what you're telling," Daisy stated. 

"No, just interested because...former workplace, former coworkers...the fact that my daughter is caught in the middle of it all....."

"I'm handling it fine," Daisy said unconvincingly.

"Right. No, don't believe that," Alec said simply.

The waitress came with their lunch, and they ate for a bit in silence. Daisy finally said, "Well, I'm not sure I believe you either."

"I'm just concerned. Has there been a lot of fighting at home, then?"

"Way to turn it back on me, Dad," she said with a smirk. "Yeah, there is. They're barely having a civil conversation right now. In fact, on Christmas Day Mum is going to Uncle Edward and Aunt Nancy's and Dave is choosing to work."

That made him suspicious, but Alec didn't let on. "Well...I'd skip Edward and Nancy's too, whenever I could," he pointed out. Daisy nodded in agreement. "So...is one of the reason you're determined to stay is that it's a little more peaceful with us?"

Her eyes went wide then she nodded. "I'm not..totally using you as an escape. I really want to be with the family. I love being with you lot, being the big sister."

"I want us to be a peaceful place for you. There was too much time, before and after I divorced your mum, when I couldn't give you that. You always have a home with us, any time you want," Alec said, squeezing her hand. She gave him a brief, but tight squeeze back. "And I reckon it won't be that peaceful, you know. Or at least not quiet. You have those little brothers." She burst out laughing, a true smile for the first time since he picked her up. 

The subject shifted to Christmas Eve plans, about gifts she had found for Tom and Fred and other happy things. By the time they were on the road again, she was looking for a Christmas carol playing radio station. Alec didn't mind at all. 

******  
"No, Tom. Not a hoodie. A jumper." She distinctly pronounced the syllables of 'jumper' in case he didn't comprehend. " A proper jumper and trousers if you won't wear a tie!" Ellie shouted up the stairs. A disgruntled Tom appeared at the top of the stairs, displaying a hunter green jumper. 

"Christmassy enough for you?" He grumbled.

"Yes. It is. I finally approve."

"About time!" He stomped back up to his attic room. Ellie shook her head. Battling over the proper attire for a carol service at the church had worn her out and it wasn't even close to dinner time yet. 

She was relieved that they were heading to Weymouth to a Chinese restaurant for dinner tonight because she was going to need all the rest she could get to make a turkey dinner for her family and Lucy and Olly. She didn't think she had the energy for two full holiday dinners. 

Ellie checked her watch, hoping that Alec and Daisy would be home soon, and her Christmas wish was granted when she saw Alec's car pulling into the driveway. Fred saw the car from the living room and squealed laughter. "Who is it, Father Christmas?" Ellie asked with a laugh.

"It's my Daisy!" he hollered, and his expression told her that Daisy was just as good as Father Christmas any day. Fred dashed to the back door to meet them. 

"Put shoes on!" Ellie yelled as she heard Fred throw open the back door, but by then Daisy was already up the back steps and Fred was in her arms. 

"Here's me best mate," Daisy said in a silly voice, peppering Fred's face with kisses as he squirmed in her arms, screaming laughter.

******

Fred wanted to open Daisy's presents "right now!" and was highly disgruntled when that wasn't allowed. He was grumbled even more when he discovered he would have to take a nap. Daisy became the nap hero, however when she deposited her things in her room and escorted Fred to his. When Daisy and Fred were ensconced in his room, Alec pulled Ellie aside and filled her in on Daisy's news. 

Her eyes wide with shock, Ellie asked, "Really, you don't think he's shaggin' someone behind her back? That's a big leap. More than likely the pressure at work is bleedin' over to their home life. I hate that for Daisy."

"I know, I know...speculation. I just know what happened the last time he got distracted."

"Honestly, I never thought the bloke had it in him to pull that off more than once." That struck Alec as funny and he laughed, surprised. 

"Well..there's that." He sobered and added, "Daisy's a lot more upset than she letting on. I told she could be here any time she wanted. I don't want her going through that again, with the adults in the house always at war. She's done that once already."

"Of course she always has a place here. How's she getting along with Tess? I imagine she feels pretty torn between us and her," Ellie surmised.

"She does. I could see that when we left." He rubbed his eyes tiredly. She hugged him.

"You should take a nap with Fred," she suggested. 

"I'm not that tired," Alec disagreed.

******

It was Fred waking Alec up, however after he dozed off on the sofa by the soft light of the Christmas tree. It was already early evening, and the sun was beginning to set. Fred was in his Christmas jumper and corduroys. "Daddy, we gotta go get food soon," he said, nudging Alec's arm. 

Alec sat up and rubbed his eyes. Close to five, he saw on the mantle clock. He was glad he didn't take long to get ready to go somewhere. 

"My dad used to call dozin' off in front of the Christmas tree 'havin' a meditation upon the spirit of Christmas,'" Ellie said from the kitchen door. She was wearing a silvery gray jumper and a black skirt with her makeup done and her hair up.

"I can go with that," Alec agreed, standing up stiffly. "You're gorgeous." He crossed the room and joined her in the doorway, pointing up at the mistletoe hanging above them. "Not that I ever need an excuse...." he muttered as he leaned down and snogged her throughly. They hadn't kissed for long when both felt the unmistakable sensation of a little boy trying to push them apart. They both laughed as the kiss ebbed. Ellie scooped up her boy. 

"Fred, we were enjoyin' that mistletoe!" She admonished with a smile.

"No mistletoe!" Fred groused. Mumma and Daddy had spent far too much time under that thing for his liking.

"We are getting in the way of the part when Father Christmas comes," Alec pointed out. Fred nodded in agreement and that only made them giggle more. Ellie started peppering Fred's little face with kisses and Alec started kissing the top of his head, and by the time Tom and Daisy came to see what the commotion was about Fred was shrieking with laughter and wriggling. Alec eventually decided he'd better get dressed and excused himself. Ellie pulled Daisy aside.

Daisy said, before Ellie could say anything to her, "Dad talked to you, right? I'm okay. I really am. I'm home, right?"

Ellie gave her a squeeze, which said all that needed to be said. 

*****

Dinner at the restaurant was lovely. They were one of a half dozen families enjoying the evening. They are their fill and talked about the animated Christmas shows Alec and Ellie watched as children. 

They settled into a pew in the church, the sound of choir filling the sanctuary. They weren't regular attendees by any means but Ellie knew that the choir, which sounded so-so on any given Sunday, was in fine voice that night. She wondered if that was a special kind of Christmas magic that enchanted all small town choirs on Christmas Eve. 

Alec sat close to her, holding her hand, with Fred leaning against him sleepily. Daisy sat on the other side, whispering answers to Fred's questions when he pointed things out around the church. 

Tom sat on Ellie's opposite side. It did not escape Ellie's notice when Tom gave a broad smile to Genny Powell when she entered the sanctuary with her family. Ellie gave him a sideways glance, and noticed that Tom was still looking at Genny. He was trying to be cool about it, but she knew. He had a gift for Genny under their tree, a pair of bright blue Doctor Who themed texting gloves. The look on Tom's face had been priceless when he had shyly asked Ellie if he thought she'd like them. He was planning on giving them to her when his friends got together on Boxing Day. 

Ellie looked around the candle lit sanctuary, and she felt an overwhelming sense of peace, so different from last year's horrible Christmas. They had been together, Fred and Tom and her at Lucy's place, but she had never felt more alone. She had spared a thought to how Alec was doing, but an argument with Tom had kept her from picking up her phone to call him. 

Now, she was surrounded by her new family, her sister was across the church looking healthy and happy, and she prayed that the good times would stay around for a very long time.

******

Last year at Christmas, Alec had been lying on his side on the lumpy sofa in the chalet, wrapped in a wool tartan blanket. He had been so cold, so tired. His heart condition had always kept him feeling cold, but he'd gotten used to it. Except he recalled that night it had been overwhelmingly uncomfortable and lonely. He had let himself think about Ellie, as he had done from time to time. But he hadn't called her. He'd even picked up his phone and nearly dialed. In the end, he hadn't gone through with it. He didn't think she would have welcomed it then.

Now, in the church sanctuary with the choir singing "Silent Night", Alec was aware of Ellie's warmth next to him, her hand in his, and Fred's warm, sleepy body against his side. Tom was looking at his girlfriend. Daisy appeared more relaxed and happy. Eventually there'd be issues with Tess and her drama, but for now he basked in the warmth and peace. 

He looked at Fred, whose eyes had finally gotten too heavy to keep open. Alec chuckled and whispered in Ellie's ear, "And that's why you take small children to church late on Christmas Eve." He could feel her shaking with barely suppressed laughter. 

He had never been particularly religious, even though he was brought to church dutifully as a child by James and Jean Hardy. On this Christmas Eve, in the place where God had intended him to be, he prayed for the same blessings as Ellie had.

******

Fred had a second wind when they got home, but fortunately it didn't last long. After leaving carrots and cookies out for Father Christmas and Rudolph, (and Alec had jokingly suggested a cold brew for Jack Frost as well), Fred finally was finally worn down. He fell asleep on Ellie's lap and she carried him carefully up to bed. The teenagers surprised them by actually going to bed, instead of staying up late into the night watching movies. 

Alec and Ellie went into present mode, bringing all the gifts from various hiding places. It was late when they finally got everything displayed. Alec was placing the tiny two wheeled Lightning McQueen bike under the tree when Ellie emerged from the kitchen with eggnog for both of them. "Aren't you glad you paid the extra money to have that put together at the shop?" she asked. "You'd be up till half three doing it."

"You doubt my handyman skills then? You know I'm handy," he argued.

"Handsy, maybe," she said with a giggle. He joined her on the sofa, relieving her of the eggnog mugs. 

"Handsy definitely. And I was also wonderin' if you were knackered because I have this Christmas wish...desire, really...." He was becoming handsy, to her delight.

"Yeah?" she said with a brilliant smile that made his heart speed up pleasantly. "Did you now?" She brushed a kiss against his lips. "What was it?"

"To make love to you by the light of the Christmas tree. If you're not too knackered, that is."

She kissed his jaw, working her way slowly to his lips, speaking in between kisses, "We do have to get up early..." She made it to his mouth and snogged him deeply and slowly, moving to straddle him. 

Alec got his Christmas wish. 

Afterward, they figured out a way to fit together lying on the sofa, and he pulled the tartan blanket over them. Their breathing slowing, heart rates calming down, Alec caressed her shoulder as Ellie hummed with pleasure. Alec remembered the way his last Christmas had gone and chuckled as he thought of the irony that he should be spending another Christmas Eve under this blanket on a sofa, but under much different circumstances. "What's so funny?" Ellie asked.

"Just thinkin' about the twists and turns life has taken us on this past year. "

"Definitely a turn for the better," Ellie said, kissing his neck gently. "I love you."

"And I love you. Looking forward to the new year for a change. I haven't felt like that in a very long time." He wound an errant curl around his finger and kissed her lips softly. 

"Nor have I. Didn't think I'd be able to make it through the year. I resolved to take it one day at a time. If I made it through that, then surely it would get better. Took long enough, but it finally did. Round about the time you decided not to get in that cab and leave." 

"That's about the time it did for me, too."

Alec nuzzled his cheek against hers, yawning. Ellie laughed. "You know we can't doze off down here. If Fred walks in on us we'll have taken 'I Saw Mummy Kissing Santa Claus' to the next level." 

"Not to mention the traumatized teenagers." They shared a laugh, and finally started collecting clothes from the floor. They put on warm pajamas and crawled into bed very early in the morning Christmas Day to get what little sleep they could before the children woke up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The scene with Alec and Daisy teases a story that's coming, probably after I get Alec and Ellie married off.  
> I decided to add an epilogue to this story, which will be coming soon, along with the story of Tom presenting Genny with the gloves. Happy Christmas to all!


	4. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Christmas Day at the Hardy/Miller house brings joy, and just a wee bit of angst.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was originally the first chapter to the next story in the series, "Days of Auld Lang Syne." It was taking forever for them to get on the road so I decided it would work better as a chapter here. I'm still not quite sure about it. It took a bit more of an angstier turn than I expected.  
> And yes, David Tennant fans, the jumper Ellie gives him is indeed the one from the Brazil comic con, where he did Jessica Jones publicity. Couldn't resist.

Alec and Ellie woke up Christmas morning, too bloody early, by a very enthusiastic boy who really didn't know or care that his parents had gotten to bed very late. 

Despite that, it was a wonderful morning. From Fred's enthusiastic "Oh, yeah!!" at the sight of his tiny red bike to Alec's joy at the sight of his daughter opening gifts and beaming beautifully, it was absolutely perfect. The teenagers gave the gift of not being overly annoyed by their soppy, sentimental parents. 

Alec was still woefully unsure of his gift to Ellie, but she loved it. The bracelet with all their birthstones was adorning her wrist. She thought she might never take it off. The plaque with the sentiment, "Every day I fall more in love with you, except for the days you piss me off," was met with laughter and a large kiss from Ellie. "Aw, love, I feel exactly the same way about you," Ellie said, still laughing. It was met with raised eyebrows from the teenagers. 

"I don't think that's something you ever would have gotten Mum," Daisy said with a smirk, for Alec's ears only.

"And therein lies the difference between your Mum and Ellie," Alec murmured, causing Daisy to burst out laughing.

Alec was delighted with all the mystery novels Ellie had found him, particularly the signed Daschiell Hammett. 

He was a little less sure about the striped jumper. It was done in shades of orange, and really was more color than he was used to wearing. He gave Ellie a skeptical look, and she told him, "You have to try it on, at the very least." When he appeared back downstairs a while later, wearing the jumper and a pair of jeans, the hungry look she gave him convinced him that a little more color in his wardrobe would be worthwhile. He left the jumper on.

Dinner with Lucy and Olly was better than tolerable for Alec, since Olly brought a new girlfriend and Lucy spent most of the afternoon trying to embarass her rather than take the piss out of Alec. In the kitchen cleaning up, Ellie had some advice for her sister, "You want to take it easy on Amanda? She looks like a keeper and you're gonna scare her off!"

"I didn't scare off the Scotsman, did I?" Lucy smirked.

"Well, you're not his potential mother-in-law," Ellie reasoned. "And you tried."

"I've reevaluated my thoughts on him, I'll have you know. He's a grouch, a total arsehole and stubborn to boot..."

"This is reevaluating?"

"But....he loves you and those boys and he's a good man. And you deserve that. We may never totally agree on everything, but we both love you." Ellie gave her sister a squeeze. Because she sensed she was steering into soppy territory, Lucy felt compelled to add, "And he has a fine arse."

Ellie laughed, shocked, and retorted, "Eyes front, soldier!"

"I'll make sure he's always in front of me...."

"Lu, I swear!" Ellie smacked her arm, and they were both laughing now. Alec wandering into the kitchen with a stack of dishes only made them laugh harder. He cocked an eyebrows, put down the dishes and left the room without comment. Lucy made a show of watching him leave. Ellie covered Lucy's eyes with her hand, which only made Lucy shake with silent laughter.

*****

Later, after Lucy left, Ellie observed her older son, so tall now, nearly matching Alec's height. He was laughing at something Daisy had said in passing. Tom's smile was infectious. Ellie couldn't resist grabbing the boy and hugging him tightly. He reciprocated for as long as he could then wriggled away, still smiling. "What was that about?" 

"It's Christmas and you're smiling," Ellie said simply.

He couldn't look her in the eye when he murmured, "Did I ever tell you I'm sorry about last Christmas?"

"Maybe. And did I ever tell you I forgave you for it a long time ago?"

She smiled gently at her son, embraced her again briefly, muttering his gratitude before he left the room, presumably in search of snacks. 

*****

The rest of the day was spent playing board games, assembling Legos and patching up ouchies from bike lessons. Alec thought he'd probably laughed more that day than he had the past few years. Ellie ran out of space on her phone taking pictures of everyone's smiling faces. 

She had room for one more, though, of Alec and Fred, exhausted from bike lessons, asleep on the sofa together. Alec looked slightly uncomfortable serving as a mattress for a growing boy who was drooling on his jumper, but they both were soundly sleeping. As her father would have said, they were meditating upon the the spirit of Christmas. It looked like quite the peaceful meditation from where Ellie was observing them.

******

Daisy took a a break from the board games to go up to her room for some privacy to call her mother. Tess answered on the first ring, which concerned Daisy. Obviously her mother had been waiting by the phone. She felt bad that time had gotten away from her. It was nearly twilight.

"Hi, Daisy," her mum said, and Daisy could detect a note of coolness in her tone. Shit, Daisy thought.

She went on with her cheery greeting. "Hi, Mum, happy Christmas!"

"I didn't think I'd hear from you before Boxing Day," Tess replied. 

"I'm sorry, Mum," she said sincerely. "Time flew today...we got up ridiculously early, but you know how it is with little kids. Fred was so excited. He got a bike and Dad's been teaching him to ride it. It has training wheels, but Fred's a bull in china shop but you know...injuries." She trailed off, realizing she was babbling. 

"Sounds like fun," Tess said neutrally. "Edward and Nancy send their love. We've had an enjoyable day, when Edward wasn't spouting off about politics and football. That got awkward."

"I'm sure it did. He tends to go on," Daisy replied. "Was dinner nice?"

"Yes, and Dave actually showed up, a Christmas miracle. Then I got to be entertained by Edward having a go at him."

Daisy didn't know what say to that. "Yeah....we had a nice dinner, with a rather large helping of awkward. Ellie's nephew brought his girlfriend and Ellie's sister spent time embarrassing the hell out of the nephew."

Tess made a sound, which Daisy supposed was to indicate interest but Tess immediately changed the subject. "So, the Thompsons are wanting a head count for the twenty-eighth...."

Daisy rolled her eyes. Really, she thought they had worked this out. They had even discussed Glasgow. "Mum, I'll still be here. We're going up to Glasgow. "

"Thought maybe...plans had changed. I can't imagine your dad willingly taking a long car trip with a car full of people up to a place where he hates being." 

Daisy pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to find patience. "Mum, he's never said that. As far as I know, we're going. Look, I miss you. I'll be back soon. But I've missed a lot of time with Dad. And Dave's family really couldn't care less if I'm there or not. Dave's probably glad to be shut of me. So please stop trying to guilt me into this."

"I'm not guilting you into anything," Tess snapped back.

"That's not how it feels to me. And Mum, I love you but the more you push....."

"The more you pull away. Yes. I've been lectured on that point quite well by your father." Her voice was tight and bitter, and it broke Daisy's heart a little to hear it. 

Daisy sighed shakily. "I need to go... But I'll call you before we leave. I hate hanging up with you angry, Mum." 

There was a pause. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have.....anyway, you enjoy your Hardy family reunion in Glasgow. We'll do our best to salvage our Christmas here. Don't worry. Love you, honey."

"I love you, too, Mum," Daisy said, her voice small. They said their goodbyes and rang off, Daisy lying back on her pillows. Tears were starting to leak out of the corners of her eyes. At that moment the door cracked open and Tom peeked in. 

"Hey, we're startin' a Mario Kart tournament and I'm gonna kick your dad's...." He noticed then that Daisy was upset. "What's wrong?"

"Called Mum," she said by way of explanation. 

"Oh. Bad?"

"Kinda," Daisy sighed, then she grabbed a tissue and wiped her eyes. She got up off her bed, remembering that between the two of them, Tom had won the bad parent lottery. She could suck it up and deal with her mum. "Ready to administer that ass kicking?"

"He's been askin' for it," Tom said, willingly changing the subject. He didn't want to press. He had no idea what he'd advice he'd give her. 

Daisy decided to try to relax and enjoy her family time. Before the Mario Kart tournament started, however, she gave her dad a warm hug. He gave her a questioning look, but she just kissed his cheek and sat down. 

Alec exchanged a look with Ellie. They both knew why Daisy went upstairs. Daisy smiled and said, "I'm fine," when she saw them observing her. "You know Mum."

Alec did. And that's why he worried.

*****

After Fred was in bed and the teenagers had retired to their room to fiddle with their electronic gadgets, Alec and Ellie collapsed onto their bed, too knackered to pick up where they left off early that morning on the sofa. They spooned up together, his arm around her waist, both sighing as they relaxed. "Lovely day," Alec murmured.

"The best," Ellie agreed. "Although, I'm glad we have nothing to do tomorrow but have a lie in and knock about the house all day. Tom's got that gathering, though. That's all." After a few seconds of silence Ellie started chuckling. "Tom bought Genny a gift, did I tell you? He's supposed to give it to her tomorrow."

Alec grinned. "And so it starts," he sighed.

"Indeed. Oh! Don't forget- you and Carrie need to make the plans for New Year. She said she'd be back home tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah."

"So, don't forget. How long's it been since you were there?"

There was a pause as Alec thought about it. It took a few seconds to recall. "I guess....we didn't go back after Dad died so.." He scratched the back of his head, thinking. "Maybe since Daisy was four? She was five when he died. When I got together with Carrie after our parents died it was always in London. Couple of times in Blackpool."

"That long?" 

"I guess. It always went to hell when we visited Dad at his house, but for some reason when he came to our house he behaved. Mostly." He rolled over on his back. He didn't want to go into details. He really didn't have great memories of Glasgow, other than Carrie's companionship. Maybe, he thought, it would be better just to plan a holiday in Blackpool in the summer..... He'd always enjoyed those. Maybe he'd talk to Carrie about that instead, he mused.

He didn't tell Ellie about his misgivings.

Missing his warm body, Ellie rolled to her side and placed her head on his his chest, feeling his steady heartbeat. "Are you looking forward to going back?" She had a feeling that what he wasn't saying spoke volumes about his emotions. 

"Glad I talked to Carrie," he allowed. Then he yawned and kissed the top of her head and the subject was closed. 

Ellie slept eventually. It took Alec a bit longer, with concerns about Daisy and memories of growing up in Glasgow turning over in his mind until he finally fell into an exhausted doze.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ......To be continued in "Days of Auld Lang Syne," coming around New Year's, if I can get that first chapter the way I want it!

**Author's Note:**

> We're getting a brief glimpse here of the renewed turmoil in Daisy's life, which will be an ongoing plot point through the next few stories. The real angst won't start for a while, but we'll be getting hints of it as the series goes along.


End file.
